Kisumu,

April 01 2023,

K.N.A

By Adoyo Immaculate and Benedict Odhiambo  

 Nyanza Church leaders now want the Azimio leadership to suspend the nationwide demonstrations citing the escalation of political tension in the country.

The leaders led by the National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK) Nyanza region chairman Bishop David Kodia pleaded with the Raila Odinga led team to consider embracing an alternative peaceful approach by presenting their demands to the government.

In a press briefing held in Kisumu Friday, Bishop Kodia urged the opposition to opt for a judicial process or engage in dialogue even as they petitioned the Kenya Kwanza administration to address the rising cost of living amid other grievances.

“As people of God, we are guided by the scriptures to embrace the spirit of dialogue. We are guided that dialogue brings people together and nullifies hostility and gives everyone a chance to reason not to fight. When people come together, they start seeing the potential in one another and this reduces the level of mistrust between them,” he proposed.

The Bondo Anglican Church diocese Bishop lamented the state of fear and anxiety that has engulfed Nyanza region due to the bloody anti government protests that he stressed threatened development.
He decried that the nationwide protests have affected learning in many day schools besides loss of several lives and destruction of property worth millions of shillings.

“There are some protesters who have taken advantage of the demonstration to create illegal barricades as a means of fleecing money from motorists,” he stated while exhorting people to respect the sanctity of life and shun criminal activities.

Consequently, he implored the Azimio brigade to file an appeal at the Supreme Court of Kenya to revisit the opening of the servers.
“We have also noted with regret the manner in which the leadership has responded to the Azimio demos. Brute force and inhuman behaviors that belongs to the old order have been applied,” stated Bishop Kodia.

“The entire security machinery belongs to the people of Kenya, not the government. The security personnel are not paid by the government but by the taxpayers’ money. Time has come that the police must be demystified, present as a service, not a terror unit used to curtail the rights of those in the opposition,” he continued.

The clergy thus urged the Inspector General and his entire team to remain professional even in the face of unnecessary orders and show Kenyans civility in their dealings since they all need each other.

The clergy pledged to the people to remain prayerful, truthful and peaceful as they seek better solutions to the problems at hand.

“Let those who are closer to our national leaders stop playing sycophancy and instead look at the mood of the nation from a national interest and make the right decisions. We should not be struggling to spend a lot of energy defending our leaders. The course of justice, peace and unity is paramount,” he concluded. 

Courtesy K.N.A